Shoe construction



` April 6, 1937. J. J.`wH|TE SHOE CONSTRUCTION Filed June ll Patented pr. 6, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcE SHOE CONSTRUCTION corporation of Illinois Application June 11, 1934, Serial No. 729,936

Claims.

This invention has to do with a shoe construction and is concerned more particularly with a shoe having a rubber tread, such as one made of crepe rubber.

It is an object of the invention to provide a shoe having the advantages of a leather sole and heel from the standpoint of appearance and the advantages of a rubber sole and heel from the standpoint of wear and comfort.

It is another object of the invention to provide a sport shoe of improved construction.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved rubber heel construction.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a novel process of making an improved heel construction.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of an improved method for making rubber sole shoes.

In accordance with the general features of the invention, after the upper is lasted to the insole and both secured to a welt strip, a strip of smoothcutting rubber, i. e., in which a smooth surface is formed when cut, such as gasket rubber is cemented over the entire bottom of the shoe. Prior to the application of this sheet, the bottom of the wel-t and insole may be in the same plane so that no filler material is used, or if desired filler material may be deposited between the channel lips of the insole. After the sheet is cemented in` place, a strip of leather such as might remain if the major portion of a leather sole were removed to leave a margin, is stitched vertically to the welt and sheet. Thereafter a sole preferably of rubber material such as crepe rubber is cemented to the portion of said sheet exposed within the strip of leather referred to, and is substantially thicker than the leather strip so as to project substantially beyond the same and provide the tread for the sole.

When the outer vertical surfaces of the welt, sheet and leather strip are finished, the whole presents a smooth finish just as may be found in any leather sole shoe, and yet the rubber sole affords all of the cushioning qualities of rubber soles heretofore employed. The crepe rubber is preferred for the sole, but in the past has been found unsatisfactory because of the fact that its edge becomes easily soiled and tends to become rather prominent after a short periodV of wear, thereby Very materially detracting from the appearance of the shoe.

The heel construction in accordance with this invention is somewhat similar to that of the sole construction except, essentially, that the crepe rubber heel tread piece, while secured within the confines of the leather strip, is nevertheless formed to overhang the strip to such an extent, especially at the rearmost portion of the heel, as oo-receive the brunt of the impact with a floor or ground as the step is taken, thereby protecting the adjacent portion of the leather strip which would otherwise become worn rapidly and make the shoe unsightly at the rear, as is common in shoes heretofore in vogue. rlhe crepe rubber being of superior wearing qual-ity, will permit much longer wear of the heel without permitting the heel to become unsightly.

In the making of the heel construction, it is preferred to bevel both the leather strip and the cooperating portion of the crepe rubber tread, and to stitch the leather strip through the gasket rubber sheet and adjacent heel lift. It has been found advantageous to stitch the leather strip before bevellingthe same since otherwise the stitching has a tendency to crowd toward the bevelled portion and thus provide an unsatisfactory stitching of the strip in place.

Other important objects and advantages of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

This invention (in preferred forms) is illustrated in the drawing and hereinafter more fully described.

Figure 1 is a bottom plan View of a shoe made in accordance withl the principles of the invention, partly broken away to show certain details of the heel construction.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary sectional View taken substantially in the plane designated by the line II-l'l in Figure 1, and turned through a right angle so as to extend generally horizontally.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially in the plane designated by the line IIIY-III Figure 1', and

Figure 4` is a View similar to Figure 2 but-of a somewhat modified form of the invention.

As shown on the drawing:

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, a shoe in bottom plan View in Figure 1 and constructed in accordance with 'the present invention includes a heel portion IA and a sole portion 2 extending forwardly fromv the heel. In making one form of sole construction embodying the invention, the insole 3 is formed with the usual channel 4, leaving a lip 4a. The upper 5 is lasted over the insole and a welt strip 6 stitched at 'l horizontally to both the upper and the insole. The bottoms of the upper, welt and stitched-in part 8 of the insole are then nished flush. Said stitched-in part ,8 projects somewhat below the remainder of the insole 3, providing a cavity 9 for the reception of ller material I5 of any suitable composition. One such material comprises asphaltum which is preferably placed in intimate contact with the insole and is covered by a layer of ground cork. The inner portion may if desired be cork which is ground and covered with asphaltum. Other suitable material may be employed for this purpose. The filler material is so placed that its bottom surface is substantially flush with the bottom surfaces of the part 8, upper 5, and welt 6.

These combined surfaces then receive a coating IUa of adhesive such as rubber cement, over which is placed a layer I I of rubber sheet material which, in a mans shoe, may be about Tk thick and which is preferably made of a material whose edge will finish smoothly, such as gasket rubber. Prior to this operation, a shank stiifener of metal or other material is secured to the shank of the insole. The sheet of gasket rubber preferably extends throughout the entire shoe from toe to heel.

With the piece of gasket or like rubber thus secured, a strip I2 of leather or other suitable material of the same general form as a welt strip such as would remain if an outsole were cut out to leave a margin of from about 1A," to about 1A, more or less, of substantially rectangular cross-section, is stitched at I3 to the marginal portion of said piece II and the welt 6. This operation leaves a large space I4 bounded at the sides and front by the outsole strip I2. 'I'he bottom surface of the layer II is then coated with an adhesive I5 such as rubber cement and thereafter there is applied to this adhesive a tread piece or outsole of crepe rubber or rubber of like characteristics of wear as shown at I6. This piece IB preferably extends rearwardly with the leather strip I2 somewhat beyond the front face I'I of the heel I as shown at I8, the portion covered by the heel being preferably skived even with the corresponding ends of the strip I2 so that said end portions of. the piece I6 and strip I2 may be anchored between the heel portion of the sheet or layer I I and the heel structure proper. 'Ihe piece I6 is substantially thicker than the strip I2, preferably projecting downwardly therefrom about in a mans shoe. Of course the amount may be varied, but the extent mentioned has been found satisfactory from the standpoint of service as well as from the standpoint of appearance of the shoe as a whole. It is preferably such, in any event, as to protect the surrounding strip I2 from wear, including the toe as the shoe is swung upwardly at the heel about the toe as a center preparatory to taking a step. When the edge of the sole is trimmed, bringing the outer vertical edges of the welt E, layer II and outsole strip I2 flush as shown in Figure 2, blacking or other suitable coating is applied, said surfaces being continuous and smooth and even and giving the shoe a very neat appearance.

In the heel construction, after the lifts represented generally by the reference character I9 have been cemented or otherwise secured together, they form a unit which is positioned under the layer II extending under the heel as shown at Ila, in Figure 3 and, if desired, may be cemented to said layer.

'I'he structure constituting the face lift or top lift of the heel constitutes an important part of the invention and comprises a leather or composition lift 20, a layer 2| preferably of gasket rubber similar to the layer II elsewhere described but, of course, in the shape and size of the heel proper, a skeleton strip 22 preferably of. leather and a tread piece 23. The layer 2I is preferably cemented to the lift 20, and then the skeleton leather strip of the same cross-sectional form as the strip I2, namely substantially rectangular, is given a substantially horse shoe shape and placed over the margin of the layer 2l so that the outer edges of the parts 20, 2l and 22 are substantially flush. Of course this is done prior to the trimming operation and consequently the edges are made smooth and even in a subsequent operation. The leather strip is thereupon stitched at 24 to the layer 2I and lift 26 so as to positively hold them together as a unit. After this stitching operation, the skeleton strip is cut away at its free inner corner to form a bevel as -at 25.

This structure comprising the parts 29, 2I and 22, sewed or stitched together at 24 is then preferably cemented as at 26a to the heel lift structure I9, and thereafter any suitable number of nails, one of. which is illustrated at 25, are driven through the layer 2|, lift 20, lifts I9 through the heel Seat and the insole, the points being turned back into the heel Where they are clinched.

Either at this time or before this nailing operation, the inner surface of the skeleton strip is cut on an incline to provide an inner bevelled surface 27. After this structure is nailed in place as mentioned, the bevelled surface 21 and exposed surface 29 of the layer 2l are coated preferably with rubber cement. Then preferably a piece of crepe rubber 23 which has been preformed with an outer bevelled surface 28 and shaped to fit snugly within the confines of the strip 22 so that its bevelled surface will engage the bevelled surface 21 and so that its upper surface will at the same time engage the exposed surface 29 of the layer 2I, is cemented to said surfaces of the strip 22 and layer 2| as shown in Figures 1 and 3. The piece 23 is of such thickness as to project downwardly substantially beyond the strip 22, an extent of approximately having been found satisfactory in a mans shoe such as that illustrated. The bevel on the piece 23 enables the same to overhang the bottom surface 30 of the strip 22 to such an extent as to have its edge portion 3| disposed marginally slightly inward of the outer vertical edge 32 of the strip 22. This is especially important construct-ion for the rear part of the heel, where the brunt of the wear on heels occurs. Unless the overhang referred to is provided, the strip 22 at the rear part of the heel is worn very appreciably in a short period of time, as is well known, thereby very materially detracting from the appearance of the shoe. In addition, the cushioned effect obtained by the use of the piece 23 would be partly if not entirely lost. With the overhang, when the heel is first brought down, the overhanging portion of the tread piece 23 is in position toV receive the major portion if not the entire impact upon striking of the heel with the ground or floor, thus protecting the strip 22 and at the same time affording the desired cushioning effect. The bevelling operation on the strip 22 is preferably performed after the stitching operation for the reason that it is found that if the bevelling operation is performed rst, the stitching crowds over toward the bevelled portion because of the inability of the bevelled portion to provide proper side support for the stitching operation.

The ends 33 of the stitching 24 are clinched as by nails 34 which may extend into the heel lift structure I9, to firmly secure said ends and prevent their unravelling.

When the vertical surface of the heel structure is trimmed and nished, it has a very neat appearance. Yet, by the provision of the top lift structure as hereinabove described, wear of the rear edge portion of the leather part of the heel is substantially prevented, a cushioned heel tread being provided for comfort.

The gasket rubber may of course be any color and accordingly, if desired, the same may be made in the color in which the associated welt and outsole strips are finished. However, said rubber is of such acharacter that it will hold any coloring that may be applied thereto, so as to be in harmony with the adjacent contacting parts of the shoe structure.

In Figure 4 a modified sole structure is illustrated. The modification resides in the omission of filler material between the rubber layer Il and the insole 3. After the welt, upper and insole are stitched together, and the welt turned down to the position shown, the welt, upper and lip resulting from the channel 4 are trimmed substantially ush with the bottom of the insole as shown in Figure 4, the layer of rubber ll being cemented directly to the substantially continuous surface provided thereby.

It will be appreciated that while the material for certain parts of the structure is described as leather, any other material such for example as leather composition, rubber composition or the like which will give a smooth edge and has the desired strength and durability may be employed. Likewise, the layer material Il and 23 may also be varied, and is preferably yieldable and compact similar to gasket rubber. Gasket rubber for this purpose has been found suitable because of its being capable of being edge-trimmed and nished with a smooth surface to which dirt will not adhere to any appreciable extent. Crepe ru ber layer material is disadvantageous because it does not provide a smooth edge and because its edge holds dirt and in a short period of use has an unpresentable appearance, and also because its edge will not hold a color finish well.

Lock stitching is preferably employed in holding the sewed parts together.

The outsole I6 may be cemented along its edge to the inner edge I2a of the strip l2. This not only serves to more firmly anchor the outsole, but prevents pebbles and the like from becoming lodged between said edges.

The invention is also applicable to ladies and childrens shoes.

The outsole could if desired be formed to underhang the toe of the strip l2 to the extent and for the purpose described above in connection with the toplift 23.

The toplift 23 could if desired be rabbeted to receive the inside lower corner (removed in Figure 3 to provide bevelled surface 21) of the strip 22, and thus underhang the latter for the purpose described above. ,n

I am aware that many changes may be made and numerous details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, that I, therefore, do not purpose limiting the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the prior art.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a heel construction, a top lift structure comprising a heel lift, a layer of rubber secured thereto, a border strip applied to the margin of the layer and stitched to said layer and lift, and a top lift of cushion rubber substantially integrally united with said layer and projecting below the strip and constituting the tread of the heel, said top lift being formed to underhang the strip rearwardly at the back of the heel, terminating short of the outer edge of the strip.

2. In a heel construction, a top lift structure comprising a heel lift, a border strip applied to the margin of and stitched to said lift, and atop lift of cushion rubber connected to said lift and of substantially greater thickness than the strip so as to project below the same and constitute the tread of the heel, and means clinching the ends of said stitching.

3. In a heel construction, a top lift structure comprising a heel lift, a border strip applied to the margin of and stitched to said lift, and a top lift of cushion rubber connected to said lift and of substantially greater thickness than the strip so as to project below the same and constitute the tread of the heel, said top lift being formed to underhang the strip rearwardly at the back of the heel and terminate short of the outer edge of the strip.

4. Shoe tread construction comprising an inner layer, a border strip secured adjacent said layer and projecting below the same, providing a cavity, and a cushion tread piece secured in the cavity and projecting below and underhanging the strip so as to space the latter from the ground or other support for the shoe.

5. Shoe tread construction comprising an inner layer, a border strip secured adjacent said layer and projecting below the same, providing a cavity, and a cushion tread piece secured in the cavity to the strip and projecting below and underhanging the strip so as to space the latter from the ground or other support for the shoe.

JOI-1N JOSEPH WHITE. 

